{"id":115355,"date":"2021-05-28T12:09:52","date_gmt":"2021-05-28T12:09:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fin2me.com\/?p=115355"},"modified":"2021-05-28T12:09:52","modified_gmt":"2021-05-28T12:09:52","slug":"futures-firm-ahead-of-key-inflation-report","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fin2me.com\/markets\/futures-firm-ahead-of-key-inflation-report\/","title":{"rendered":"Futures firm ahead of key inflation report"},"content":{"rendered":"
(Reuters) – U.S. stock index futures rose on Friday as focus turned to a closely watched inflation report after recent worries about a spike in prices put the S&P 500 on course for its smallest monthly gain since February.<\/p> The reading on the core personal consumption expenditures (PCE) index, scheduled for release at 8:30 a.m. ET, is expected to have risen 0.6% in April after a 0.4% increase in March.<\/p>\n The Federal Reserve\u2019s preferred inflation measure, the report could give credence to fears of an overheating economy and prompt the central bank to reconsider its accommodative monetary policy.<\/p>\n With the S&P 500 now hovering about 1% below its record high hit earlier this month, many big banks have warned of a pause in a year-long Wall Street rally that has been led mainly by heavyweight technology stocks including Apple Inc and Amazon.com Inc.<\/p>\n Investors are also hedging against market volatility as summer approaches. Strategists expect the S&P 500 to end the year at 4,300 points, according to a Reuters poll, about 100 points above its closing price on Thursday.<\/p>\n Safe-haven assets such as cash and gold funds drew investors during the week to Wednesday, Bank of America\u2019s fund flow statistics showed.<\/p>\n At 6:40 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were up 171 points, or 0.5%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 15.5 points, or 0.37%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 42.5 points, or 0.31%.<\/p>\n Salesforce.com Inc added 4.9% premarket after raising its full-year forecast for revenue and profit, helped by increased demand for its cloud-based software during the pandemic.<\/p>\n HP Inc reported quarterly revenue that beat Wall Street estimates but its shares fell 5.3% after it warned that the ongoing computer chip shortage could impact its ability to meet demand for laptops this year.<\/p>\n Boeing Co fell 1% after reports said it halted deliveries of its 787 Dreamliners, adding fresh delays for customers following a recent five-month delivery suspension due to production problems.<\/p>\n Meme stocks GameStop and AMC Entertainment jumped 4.1% and 21.8% respectively, extending gains on the back of a social media-led rally that helped double the value of AMC\u2019s stock this week.<\/p>\n The U.S. stock market will remain shut on Monday for Memorial Day holiday.<\/p>\n